U.N. agency wants speedier aircraft threat warnings - sources

By Allison Lampert
MONTREAL, Feb 25 (Reuters) - The U.N.'s aviation agency
wants to cut the time it takes to issue warnings about credible
threats to aircraft on a website it launched after the 2014
downing of a Malaysian passenger jet over Ukraine, sources
familiar with the matter said on Thursday.
The International Civil Aviation Organization is reviewing
its nearly year-old conflict zones website, which has been
criticized for taking too long - up to 72 hours - to post
advisory warnings about threats to aircraft.
Airlines have pushed for accessible, up-to-date information
on risks to civil aviation after Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was
shot down in July 2014, killing 298 people.
A proposal to eliminate the 72-hour period, a delay
countries can use to review and respond to the advisories in
advance, will be presented to ICAO's council in May, said one
aviation industry source, who was not authorized to talk to
media.
"ICAO will no longer have to hold critical information while
waiting for a state to respond," added a second source, who also
requested anonymity.
But China, Russia and Bolivia have already raised concerns
about the existing site, even before the proposed change. They
have said the site risks being hijacked for political motives
because states are allowed to post about each other's affairs,
said a third source, who sits on the ICAO council.
An ICAO spokesman said an agency review group recognizes the
need to make it easier to post information in a timely manner
but said he was unable to confirm specific details about the
proposal.
Industry groups, some of which run their own
information-sharing sites, said the ICAO website and threat
information repository could be a one-stop shop for aviation
intelligence but more states need to contribute warning notices.
"We hope that when the quality is sufficient and the
information is comprehensive ... we can use the ICAO repository
as one source to feed our site, rather than having to look at
10-15 other places," said Zarko Sivcev, adviser to the director
of the European air traffic network manager Eurocontrol.
Tony Tyler, chief executive of the International Air
Transport Association, which represents the majority of the
world's airlines, on Thursday called the ICAO repository a "good
start.
"Clearly, the governments need to step up and actually
populate it with useful information," said Tyler at an aviation
conference in New York.